Guest Dispatch: Immigration, the GOP & the Immigration Tariff

The weather was great here last week, although, it was in the low forties and we are starting to get in that familiar fall rhythm of overcast skies for most of the day. That is why when I read the first draft of this week’s Guest Dispatch from our friend in Miami, Arthur Freyre, my mind raced not on the subject matter, but on the weather down south. Arthur’s post, however, is not about the global warming or climate change myth, its about immigration and the GOP.

He and his friends have made some rather controversial recommendations about what they see as the necessary next steps for the Grand Ol’ Party and how it should manage this issue. What’s the secret? Some of it is obvious. The one recommendation that really caught my attention involves imposing a tariff, or reducing foreign aid, if a recipient country fails to improve their border controls and internal immigration systems.

Read on and tell us what you think in the comments section of this post. We enjoy answering your private e-mail but, go ahead, post publicly and move along the public dialogue. And search the blog for our prior immigration-related posts. There are a lot of them.

Happy reading and thank you Arthur for this great post. — Jason Poblete

Immigration and the GOP

Arthur Freyre, Esq.

Last week a group of my friends and I during breakfast in at a popular Miami eatery had a lively discussion that, if it could be themed, centered on “Where does the Republican Party go from here?” Being in Miami, we discussed about the Hispanic vote. In the next couple of weeks, immigration and the Hispanic vote will be a hot topic in DC. Today’s post chimes in with a summary of what we largely concluded should be pillars of the debate:

The Hispanic voter is a myth. There is no such thing. That individual does not exist. What do exist are different voting blocs that are Spanish speaking-i.e. Cubans, Puerto Ricans, Mexicans, and etc… To compare a Mexican to an Argentinian or a Colombian would not only invite ridicule, it will expose the GOP’s ignorance of Latin America. Republican consultants and elected officials use this logic to address Hispanic outreach. They need to stop.

Know your Latin American community. To continue on the first point, one must know the Latin American community that lives within their county. For instance in Miami, we have neighborhood communities of Cubans, Venezuelans, Columbians, and Nicaraguans. Out of these aforementioned groups, immigration may be a pressing issue for Nicaraguans. However, for the others, the U.S. relationships with either Cuba, Venezuela, or Columbia is a more pressing concern than immigration.

Immigration as a political really impacts one voting group-the Mexican community; however, it is not for the reasons that you may think or that the media tells us it should be. Every other Hispanic sub-voter group, including Mexican-Americans, have at least five more pressing issues-i.e. education, health care, the economy, and U.S. relations with their home country, and etc… Remember, Hispanic voting is a myth.

Any Republican proposal for immigration reform must be based on the following propositions:

Citizenship is a privilege, not an entitlement. One reason that immigration is a contentious issue is that there appears to be no desire for assimilation. One can see it during some protests of illegal immigrants demanding amnesty. The protestors are seen waving their home country’s flag. Such actions can lead one to think, “Well if they are proud of their homeland, why are they here?”

We are a nation of laws. We need to protect our borders. As the drug wars in Mexico continues to be increasingly violent and bloody, our border towns will experience a flood of refugees, if they have not done so yet.

We are also a nation of grace. Our country’s history is Judeo-Christian, whether some would like to admit it or not. I bring this point up because the Scripture teaches that we are to treat the alien among us with dignity and respect. We need to recognize that most of the illegals are hard-working individuals. They seek a better life. We must also recognize that some of them have children that were born here in the U.S. This is the only country that they know and love. At the same time, this does not mean that the U.S. is to be a welcome mat for the rest of the world. At the same time, there is an expectation that the immigrant will not only respect our laws and cultures, but also become a participant in our society. E Pluribus Unum.

We must become efficient in processing legal immigrants. The immigration processing system is extremely bureaucratic — taking years to become a citizen. We need to find ways that streamline the immigration process and case docketing system. A streamlined immigration process can help take the incentive out of coming into the country illegally.

Reduce foreign aid or impose tariffs to compensate U.S. taxpayers for the additional burdens placed on our immigration system by illegal immigration. The U.S would need to encourage these nations to resolve the root cause of the migration such as their economy. If these countries fail to take any steps to resolve this issue, then the U.S. should consider reducing aid or increase tariffs to compensate the additional burdens that are placed on the U.S. to handle the influx of immigration.

Message, message, message: Finally, the Republican party must craft a message that appeals to their core values and vision. As discussed last week, the Republican Party needs to craft a message that appeals to one group of people — those who seek the opportunity to live in a free society and to use their God given talents to the betterment of their neighborhood. This is a simple message that has multiple applications. It is a message whereby we can find, recruit, and keep, regardless of their ethnicity.

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